This blog was updated on February 27, 2024.
Case management is an important part of selling on Amazon. As the largest ecommerce marketplace, Amazon is complex, compliance-driven, and ever-changing. The platform introduces new programs and protocols all the time. An honest mistake can lead to inventory delays and even account suspensions. This can halt sales and send your team scrambling to troubleshoot the issue. Knowing how to navigate Amazon’s case management system helps keep your products live and generating revenue. Amazon case management is crucial for many reasons, including:
- Customer Service: Effective case management allows sellers to promptly address customer inquiries, complaints, and issues. This is essential for maintaining positive relationships with customers and ensuring satisfaction.
- Problem Resolution: Sellers often encounter various issues such as order defects, delivery problems, or customer dissatisfaction. Efficient case management enables sellers to quickly identify, investigate, and resolve these issues to minimize negative impacts on their business.
- Account Health: Amazon closely monitors seller performance metrics, including customer feedback, order defect rate, and late shipment rate. Resolving cases promptly and effectively can help maintain a good account health status, which is crucial for staying in Amazon’s good graces and avoiding penalties or suspension.
- Product Quality Improvement: Analyzing cases can provide valuable insights into recurring issues or customer concerns regarding product quality, packaging, or fulfillment. Sellers can use this feedback to make necessary improvements and enhance their offerings.
- Legal Compliance: Amazon has strict policies and guidelines that sellers must adhere to. Effective case management ensures compliance with these policies, minimizing the risk of account suspension or legal issues.
Case management plays a vital role in the success and sustainability of an Amazon business by facilitating excellent customer service, resolving issues efficiently, maintaining account health, improving product quality, and ensuring legal compliance. This blog discusses case management in greater detail, including how it works, tips to facilitate responses from Amazon Seller Central support, and the benefits of partnering with a proven Amazon agency to prevent problems and expedite solutions.
What is Amazon Case Management?
Case management on Amazon for sellers refers to the process of handling and resolving various types of customer inquiries, complaints, and issues that arise during the selling process. This includes managing cases opened by customers through the Amazon platform regarding orders, products, or interactions with the seller.
Here’s an overview of how case management works for brands that sell on Amazon:
- Types of Cases: Cases can include issues such as order delivery problems, product defects or damages, customer dissatisfaction, requests for refunds or returns, and questions about products or orders.
- Case Resolution: Sellers are responsible for promptly responding to and resolving cases raised by customers. This may involve providing explanations, issuing refunds or replacements, coordinating returns, or offering other solutions to address customer concerns.
- Communication: Sellers communicate with customers regarding their cases primarily through the Amazon messaging system. Clear and timely communication is essential for managing expectations and resolving issues satisfactorily.
- Monitoring and Tracking: Sellers use Amazon Seller Central, the platform’s dashboard for sellers, to monitor and track open cases. This allows sellers to prioritize and manage cases efficiently to ensure timely resolution.
- Feedback and Performance: Amazon tracks seller performance metrics related to case management, such as response time, resolution rate, and customer feedback. Maintaining high standards in case management is crucial for maintaining a good seller rating and account health.
- Continuous Improvement: Sellers can use insights gained from case management to identify areas for improvement in their products, services, or operations. Analyzing common issues raised by customers can help sellers address root causes and prevent similar problems in the future.
Case Management can be a lengthy process, depending on the issue. Sellers and vendors can create cases through their Seller Central or Vendor Central dashboard. Common reasons to create a case include the following:
- Problems with Product Pages
- Compliance Violations
- Fulfillment Issues
- Stranded Inventory
- Customer Disputes
- Error Messages
- Account Security Breaches
How to Create a Case in Amazon Seller Central
- Login to your Seller Central account and click HELP in the upper right corner.
- Click CONTACT US at bottom of the pop-up window.
- Click SELLING ON AMAZON in the new window that pops up.
- Type the issue you want to resolve.
5. Create a case from your options on the left.
Best Practices for Amazon Case Management
Resolving an issue with your account is not always easy. Amazon is a robust marketplace. Complex problems often take time to fix. The following tips can help speed up the process:
- Be Succinct
Amazon Support always has many cases to review. The quicker you explain the issue, the more likely they are to solve it. - Know Your ASINs
Support Representative’s often need ASINs (not SKUs). If your issue is product-related, have your ASIN details ready. - Be Prepared
Anticipate what Support Representatives may ask. This will help move things along. For example, if you request UPC changes on a listing, Amazon will likely need proof that you are the brand owner of that product. Have any relevant documentation ready before contacting Amazon Support. - Document Your Correspondence
Your case may take time to resolve. It is common to speak to multiple Amazon Support Representatives. Keep track of who has helped you and any progress made. This will help prevent having to start over from the beginning. - Be Polite
Amazon Support Representatives are humans. Be polite and respectful of their time. Interpersonal skills can speed up the process. - Respond Quickly
If Amazon Support asks a question, respond in a timely manner. Otherwise, they may close the case before you find a resolution.
Channel Key Takeaway
Case Management is often the most challenging part of selling on Amazon. Even veteran sellers encounter problems, from compliance violations to account suspensions. Partnering with a recognized Amazon agency is your safeguard against challenges like this. With over 250 brand partners to date, Channel Key has come across virtually every issue imaginable. Our close relationship with Amazon translates to speedy case management. More importantly, we work hard to track account health and identify any risks in advance. Preventing issues in the first place is the best form of case management on Amazon.
